The Outlaw Firm on Vinyl!
BlogJAM Nov. 12, 2023
John M. Greenberg, Mike Blakely, and I, aka, The Outlaw Firm, officially launched our latest recording, The Outlaw Firm, today to many streaming platforms, including Spotify and Pandora, and also to downloading platforms like Amazon and iTunes, both of which pay us fairly for your purchases. For those of you who prefer a tangible product, we release our old-school vinyl LP and sleek gift USB gift boxes on Nov. 25 at the Rockbox Theater, Fredericksburg, TX (tickets at https://www.rockboxtheater.com/shows.html), in time for the Christmas holidays. We’d like to pack the theater for this show so please get your tickets soon!
Why so long between blog posts? Well, I’ve been pleasantly distracted by this great recording project with my longtime friends and collaborators, Mike Blakely and John M. Greenberg, plus I’ve been in the midst of a year-long effort to create a music festival of significance for my community called FiestaJAM on Lake Marble Falls, which culminated with the Oct. 21 performance by the multiple Grammy-winning band, Los Lonely Boys. The festival included performances by Los Texmaniacs, Grammy-winners, Lisa Morales, Monte Warden, Bernie Nelson, Pauline Reese, HalleyAnna Finlay, Dustin Welch, The Outlaw Firm, and my band, Kurt Baumer, Luiz Coutinho de Souza, Mark Epstein, John M. Greenberg, and Mike Blakely.
Sandwiched between these two rewarding projects, I toured six countries in Europe, Switzerland, Germany, Czech Republic, Austria, Spain, and France, with my band, Luiz Coutinho de Souza, William Morse, and Julian Oliver, who subbed admirably for Kurt Baumer, whose schedule would not allow him to leave Texas for almost six weeks.
Before I let you go, please consider joining us January 5-11 on a music and sightseeing Carnival Dream Cruise with The Outlaw Firm from Galveston to Costa Maya, Mexico; Belize City, Belize; and Cozumel, Mexico. Prepaid gratuity included!! Music (private performances by The Outlaw Firm), Food, and Fun await you! You can book early and have plenty of time to pay off your balance, interest-free! Click this link for the details.
TEXAS-BASED SINGER-SONGWRITER SUPERGROUP THE OUTLAW FIRM TAKES SHAPE IN HILL COUNTRY Iconic Lone Star state songwriters Mike Blakely, John M. Greenberg and John Arthur Martinez join forces for new album as a trio USB Gift Box Includes 3 bonus albums.
FREDERICKSBURG, TX – News: The Outlaw Firm takes shape in the Texas Hill Country! Three musical journeymen who have performed around the world individually and together for over a quarter of a century have now made it official. The Outlaw Firm is a trifecta of Texas Hill Country singer/songwriters that includes Mike Blakely, John M. Greenberg and John Arthur Martinez. The Outlaws are releasing their first album and are currently touring around Texas and beyond. While the band may be new, the three founding members have been collaborating for nearly three decades, writing and performing in Texas and as far away as Europe. Floyd Tillman, member of the Country Music Association Hall of Fame, introduced Blakely, an award-winning novelist by day, to Martinez in 1987 at “Floyd Tillman’s Pickin’ in the Park,” a concert series hosted by Martinez in Marble Falls, Texas. Blakely had penned a feature on Floyd Tillman’s life for Texas Highways magazine. Blakely and Martinez teamed with Alex Harvey (composer of “Delta Dawn,” "Reuben James" and more) to co-write “Seguro Que Hell Yes” which landed on the Grammy-winning album, Flaco Jimenez by Flaco Jimenez (Arista). A few years later, Larry Nye – owner of Lazy L Studio in Kingsland, Texas – introduced Greenberg, the new kid in town (Marble Falls), to Blakely and Martinez. Nye produced solo albums for the three songwriters over the following years. Greenberg’s songs, “Boxcars of Reynosa,” and “I Don’t Think About You,” earned him a spot in the Kerrville New Folk Finals, 1998 & 2000. In 2006 he and Walt Wilkins co-founded The Mystiqueros releasing Diamonds In the Sun and Agave; both achieved Americana and Texas Chart success. The trio made the decision to form The Outlaw Firm last year. They recently recorded their new, self-titled album at Martinez’s studio near Horseshoe Bay. The independent release consists of nine original songs written by the band members, and a tenth number penned by up-and-coming songwriting phenom, Jake Martin. The album is now available for digital downloads and in USB format, with a vinyl LP version soon to come. The three popular Texas frontmen have fused their collective talents into a high-energy musical experience. The Outlaw Firm’s sound incorporates all that is sacred to Texas Music fans, embracing country, blues, folk-rock, conjunto, western swing and TexAmericana. The trio features precise three-part harmonies, multiple stringed instruments, and heart-pounding percussion. “Outlaw boredom and escape the mundane,” Blakely insists. “Come ride the desperado fringe with The Outlaw Firm!” Brian T. Atkinson www.briantatkinson.com